Arach Blood Isle was founded by the Celtic druids who sought to create a refuge for the "Old Ways" in a world that was being turned by the Romans into the world of the "Son of Man". The Celtic culture holds a very large part of the Island. The following is a brief insight into the ways of the Island, the culture, the beliefs, and traditions.

Arach Culture
The people of Arach are often masters of their realm in name only, being, if you will, paper tigers. The land itself, and the Dragons of Clann a'Cineal are the true masters of Arach Blood Isle.

The people of Arach hold two major positions in society as supreme: the druidic and bardic orders. The druids were the highest societal order, carrying out religious functions as necessary. The bards are second to the druids, and they are charged with the creation and preservation of Arach literature.

Arach family life.
The basic unit of Arach life is the clan, a sort of extended family. The term "family" is a bit misleading, for by all accounts the Celts practice a peculiar form of child rearing; they don't rear them, they farm them out. Children are actually raised by foster parents, with the foster father often being the brother of the birth-mother.

Clans are bound together very loosely with other clans into the Tribe of Arach Blood, however each clan has its own social structure and customs, and possibly its own gods.

Their lifestyles revolve around a shared Celtic culture. The druids and bards take upon themselves the burden of religion and literature, while the warrior chieftains keep their forces strong. They have artisans and craftsmen skilled in both woodwork and metalwork, and artists borrowing from the traditions of other peoples as well as creating their own styles.

Language.
There was a written Celtic language, and it has been developed well into the Arach language. Much of Arach history is releyed on oral transmission of culture, primarily through the efforts of bards and poets. These arts were tremendously important to the Celts, and much of what we know of their traditions comes to us today through the old tales and poems that were handed down for generations before eventually being written down.
Bards in Arach Society
The Arach bards, on the other hand, are the conservators of literature. The Celts never had their own written language, though they borrowed bits and pieces from neighboring languages, at times. Among the Arach Celts, however, the notion of literature is strictly oral; no written record is ever kept because it is considered distasteful. While this feeling is not necessarily true among the populace that migrated from Britain and Ireland, there is still a very restricted body of written literature which can be fully attributed to the people of the Isle.

Druids in Arach Society
The are the religious leaders of Arach Blood Isle, and they maintain the union between person and Dragon. They are in some ways the most mysterious. The perform the sacrifices called upon by tradition, performing simple chants and rituals to please the forces of nature, the dragons, and the old Gods the people of the Isle worship. The druid leaders gather for religious business in a place known as the Carnutes, which translates as sacred place, sacred grove, or oak sanctuary. This emphasizes the notion that the druids had a special kinship with nature and, in particular, the forests.

In their function as church elders, the druids maintain their leadership over the community in other ways, as well. The druids officiate various legal arguments among their followers, and even go so far as to become the chief educators for their flock. The druids of the Island have expanded their leadership over the people into every imaginable area.

The Druids of the Island are concidered by the people to have magical powers or abilities, among them the ability to forecast, in the vaguest of terms, future occurrences. Through various rituals, the druids will foretell that a day, week, or month would be favorable or unfavorable for such things as battle, farming, hunting, etc. The folklore of the Island indicates that these predictions are taken to heart by the people of Arach

Of course, as the religious leaders, the druids also bear the brunt of opposition and hatred from other religions. When other religious groups encounter the Druids of the Isle, they denounce them as pagans and seek to discredit them.

Another area where oral traditions is important was in the training of Druids. There has been a lot of nonsense written about Druids, but they are a curious lot; a sort of super-class of priests, political advisors, teachers, healers, and arbitrators. They have have the right to speak ahead of the Queen in council, but since she is one of their own they rarely do. They act as ambassadors in time of war, they compose verse and uphold the law. They are a sort of glue holding together Arach culture. Normally the Druidic skills are taught in an established university, where traditional knowledge is passed on by rote. However at this time there is no such university on Arach Blood.

Arach Blood Lifestyle
The lifestyles of the people of the Isle vary greatly, dictated more by the richness of the land than by anything else. Sheep herders along the foothills of the Gaileann Mountains live very differently from farmers on the plains of Colgarra or Draconia. Typically, farming villages in Arach are formed of small, square wooden houses. One of the interesting innovations that they have is the iron plough. Earlier ploughs had been awkward affairs, basically a stick with a pointed end harnessed behind two oxen. They were suitable only for ploughing the light upland soils. The heavier iron ploughs constitute an agricultural revolution all by themselves, for they made it possible for the first time to cultivate the rich valley and lowland soils. They come with a price, though. It generally requires a team of eight oxen to pull the plough, so to avoid the difficulty of turning that large a team, Arach fields tend to be long and narrow, a pattern that can still be seen in some parts of the Island today.

Villagers in Draconia tend to create larger, round stone structures with thatched roofs that reach nearly to the ground. They also have gardens and farms and keep a great deal of livestock. Livestock farmers shared the buildings, keeping each other fed (and warm). Arach peasants appear to keep many common animals, including small cattle, pigs, and geese. Wild boars are hunted — possibly as a rite of manhood. They also tend more exotic animals such as chickens, recently introduced from the east, and bees for both their wax and honey The Arach farmers grow barley, oats, and beans. They grow flax and tended to sheep for their clothing.

Arach lands are owned communally, and wealth seems to be based largely on the size of cattle herd owned. The lot of women is a good deal better than in most societies of the time, based both on the traditions of the culture, and the current rulership being Maitriarical. They are technically equal to men, owned property, and are allowed to choose their own husbands. They can also be war leaders, as evidenced by the General of the Order of Destruction, Arach's Standing Army.

Of course, the Arach nobility and the druids live a somewhat what better life. There are indications that wines are imported for the nobility, for instance, a luxury the common folk do not get to enjoy. In all fairness, The Arach nobility does not live a carefree, glamorous life. The General Luna Shae is a warlord and commands a small army of one hundred military men. The Queen is the Druidic High Priestess of the Island, Serving as both spiritual and political leader for her people.